Nenshi apologizes for 'harm' caused by photo of him with Israeli ambassador

Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi meets with supporters at pancake breakfast in Calgary on Sunday, July 7, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

EDMONTON — Alberta Opposition NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi is apologizing after he posed for a photo at the Calgary Stampede with the Israeli ambassador to Canada.

“That (photo) caused a lot of harm to a lot of people,” Nenshi told reporters Thursday.

“A lot of people were very hurt by that, and I’m very sorry.”

The photo was posted last week, depicting Nenshi side by side with Israeli ambassador Iddo Moed, smiling in cowboy hats at the Calgary Stampede festival.

Nenshi said he was having a very brief and frank conversation with Moed when the picture was taken.

It was later posted to the embassy’s official Facebook page.

Nenshi is one of about a dozen Canadian politicians who appeared in photos with Moed that were shared to the Embassy’s social media during the Stampede — from United Conservative Premier Danielle Smith to former federal NDP leader Thomas Mulcair.

The Nenshi photo prompted criticism, including a video posted to social media of Nenshi being confronted at a Stampede event by protesters. In the short video, Nenshi defended the encounter with Moed, characterizing it as politeness.

On Thursday, Nenshi, along with speaking with reporters, also issued a public statement apologizing. In the statement, Nenshi pointed to Israel’s refusal to lift blockades, which resulted in famine, and what he called its “indiscriminate” bombing.

Nenshi noted that southern Lebanon, the ancestral home of many Albertans, was recently bombed as part of a sustained campaign.

His comments are set against the ongoing polarizing global debate over Israel’s conduct in the Gaza conflict, centred around allegations of genocide, war crimes and human rights violations that Israel vehemently denies.

Nenshi says Alberta New Democrats have always stood for human rights and international law, noting the Canadian government shares those concerns.

Prime Minister Mark Carney has accused the Israeli government of failing to prevent a humanitarian crisis in Gaza and of violating international law by denying aid.

Canada has also condemned the Hamas-led attack against Israelis on Oct. 7, 2023, calling it an act of terrorism.

Nenshi said the suffering and distress is rippling far beyond the Middle East.

“What’s happening on the other side of the world is having real implications on people right here at home in Alberta,” he said.

“We’ve seen massive increases in anti-Palestinian racism. We’ve seen massive increases in antisemitism, and we have a community that is being torn apart in so many ways.”

Nenshi said he declined an invitation to an event held by the Israeli Embassy in Canada during Stampede, Calgary’s marquee rodeo festival.

Nenshi said the photo has provided a good opportunity to talk to people in the Muslim community, the Palestinian community and the Jewish community in Alberta.

“We have the ability to show the world who we are, to be models for the world on how people of different faiths, different ideologies and different politics can live together purposefully and build each other up.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 16, 2026.

Lisa Johnson, The Canadian Press